Gillibrand stresses increased screening for veterans

In an effort to combat the rising problem of veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand announced a new plan to tackle treatment and monitoring issues.

“We really must remember to pay honor to the heroes who are fighting for us today,” said Gillibrand, D-N.Y.

In New York alone, according to the RAND Copropration, about 8,000 new veterans suffer from PTSD and over 7,000 suffer from TBI.

As a result of meeting soldiers suffering from PTSD and TBI, Gillibrand proposed a plan which highlights three areas in need of improvements.

In a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates and VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, Gillibrand stresses the need for communication and coordination between the Department of Defense and Veterans affairs in sharing information on injuries and mental issues found in soldiers.

“I am particularly concerned that after nine years engaged in Overseas Contingency Operations we still do not have a referenced, functional and interoperable definition of Traumatic Brain Injury,” she wrote.

Gillibrand also said in a letter to Assistant Secretary of Defense Charles Rice that she is very concerned about the number of late-onset cases of PTSD that go untreated and unnoticed. She proposes that additional screening a year after service would “ensure that our returning soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines who have experienced trauma in their service… to receive appropriate treatment and care for their mental health wounds.”